Sullivan Ballou
|died = |placeofbirth= Smithfield, Rhode Island |placeofdeath= Sudley Church, Virginia |image = |caption = Lithograph of Sullivan Ballou |religion = |nickname= |allegiance = United States of America |serviceyears= 1861 |rank = Major |commands = 2nd Rhode Island Infantry |battles = First Battle of Bull Run (First Manassas) |awards= |laterwork = }} Sullivan Ballou (March 28, 1829 – July 28, 1861) was a lawyer, politician, and major in the United States Army. He is best remembered for the eloquent letter he wrote to his wife a week before he fought and was mortally wounded alongside his Rhode Island Volunteers in the First Battle of Bull Run. Early life Ballou was born the son of Hiram and Emeline (Bowen) Ballou, a distinguished Huguenot family in Smithfield, Rhode Island. He lost both of his parents at a young age and was forced to fend for himself. In spite of this, he attended boarding school at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. Following his graduation therefrom, he attended Brown University, where he was a member of Delta Phi, and went on to study law at the National Law School, in Ballston, New York. He was admitted to the Rhode Island bar and began to practice in 1853. Ballou devoted his brief life to public service. Shortly after being admitted to the bar, he was elected to the Rhode Island House of Representatives, where he served as a clerk, and later as the speaker. He was a staunch Republican and supporter of Abraham Lincoln. Civil War When war broke out, Ballou immediately left what appeared to be a promising political career and volunteered for military service with the 2nd Rhode Island Infantry. In addition to his combat duties, he served as the Rhode Island militia's judge advocate. Ballou and 93 of his men were mortally wounded at Bull Run. In an attempt to better direct his men, Ballou took a horse mounted position in front of his regiment, when a 6-pounder solid shot from Confederate artillery tore off his right leg and simultaneously killed his horse. The badly injured Major was then carried off the field and the remainder of his leg was amputated. Ballou died from his wound a week after that Union defeat and was buried in the yard of nearby Sudley Church. After the battle the territory was occupied by Confederate forces. According to witness testimony, it was at this time that Ballou's corpse was exhumed, decapitated, and desecrated by Confederate soldiers possibly belonging to the 21st Georgia regiment. Ballou's body was never recovered. In place of his body, charred ash and bone believed to be his remains were reburied in Swan Point Cemetery, Providence, Rhode Island. His wife, Sarah, never remarried. She later moved to New Jersey to live out her life with a son, William. She died in 1917 and is buried next to her husband. The letter Ballou married Sarah Hunt Shumway on October 15, 1855. They had two sons, Edgar and William. In his letter to his wife, Ballou attempted to crystallize the emotions he was feeling: worry, fear, guilt, sadness and, most importantly, the pull between his love for her and his sense of duty. The letter was featured prominently in the Ken Burns documentary ''The Civil War'', where it was paired with Jay Ungar's musical piece "Ashokan Farewell" and read by Paul Roebling. However, the documentary featured a shortened version of the letter, which did not contain many of Ballou's personal references to his family and his upbringing. It has been difficult to identify which of the several extant versions is closest to the one he actually sent, as the original seems not to have survived."Dispatch Delayed", Washington Post, July 8, 2001. Transcribed at bessel.org. Accessed October 20, 2006. The following is an extended version: The letter may never have been mailed; it was found in Ballou's trunk after he died.Brown University in the Civil War: a Memorial. Providence Press: Providence, 1868 It was reclaimed and delivered to Ballou's widow by Governor William Sprague, either after Sprague had traveled to Virginia to reclaim the effects of dead Rhode Island soldiers, or from Camp Sprague in Washington, D.C. References External links *PBS: The Civil War *The abridged version of the letter * Retrieved on 2008-02-14 Category:1829 births Category:1861 deaths Category:American military personnel killed in the American Civil War Category:Brown University alumni Category:People of Rhode Island in the American Civil War Category:People from Providence County, Rhode Island Category:Union Army officers Category:Members of the Rhode Island House of Representatives Category:Rhode Island Republicans Category:Rhode Island lawyers de:Sullivan Ballou